1. What is an Insect?

2. Links The Basics Characteristics of an Insect Vocabulary
Different Kinds of Insects
Species
Size Doesn’t Matter
The Life of an Insect
Insects in Motion
Author
Resources
Concept Map
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3. The Basics
An insect is a very small animal with certain characteristics
Most insects walk, but some can fly or jump
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4. Insect Characteristics
All Insects have an exoskeleton
They have three main body parts: thorax, abdomen, and head
Insects also have a pair of antennae on the top of their heads
Insects have compound eyes, three pairs of legs and many have two pairs of wings, but not all
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5. Vocabulary
Abdomen – the posterior (farthest to the rear) section of an insect’s body
Antennae – little “feelers” on top of the insect’s head that help them detect sounds and motion
Thorax – the middle section of an insect’s body
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6. Vocabulary continued
Invertebrate – animals that do not have a backbone. The exoskeleton is the reason insects do no need a backbone.
Exoskeleton – the hard shell-like covering on the outside of the body
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7. Vocabulary continued
Arthropods - any invertebrate animal with an exoskeleton and segmented body, and jointed appendages in pairs
Arachnids – any various arthropod that has four pairs of segmented legs, and a body divided into two regions
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8. Different Kinds of Insects
Ants, Grasshoppers, Butterflies, Beetles, and Spiders are a few of the insects you are probably familiar with
There are over 700,000 different species of insects that are known, and still more are being discovered
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9. Species
These species are categorized into a large group called Arthropods
Spiders and scorpions are placed into a group called Arachnids inside of the Arthropods
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10. Size Doesn’t Matter
Most insects are quite small, but this doesn’t mean they are at a disadvantage
An ant is able to carry 20 or more times its own weight, and the bumblebee can carry up to 300 times its own weight!
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11. The Life of an Insect
Insects still need food, water, and air to live just like we do
The life span of an insect however, depending on the type, can range from one day to fifty years!
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12. Insects in Motion
Video
Video2
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